— Evening - Thousand Treasure Pavilion —
In the opulent hall of the Thousand Treasure Pavilion, red lanterns adorned the space. These lanterns were crafted from a type of large leaf found deep within the wilderness, their flas fueled by spiritual fire, the luxuries that only the influential could afford.
The white jade pillars were decorated with auspicious carvings of dragons and phoenixes, each intricately carved from thousand-year-old wood. Every decoration and lantern within this hall was priceless.
At the center hung a red banner inscribed with the words:
"May your fortune be as vast as the Eastern Sea’s ever-flowing waters."
"May your longevity rival the Southern Mountain’s ageless pines."
This calligraphy was written by the sect leader of Calm Verdant Mountain, one of the great sects of the righteous path.
Yes, the righteous path.
Although Mo Xingyao was the only daughter of the Sky Severing Demon Sovereign, Mo Jue, a sect leader of Sky-Severing Demon Valley of the Demonic Path, the Thousand Treasure Pavilion was regarded as a secular power. It freely traded with both the Demonic and Righteous Paths.
That was why the righteous sects went out of their way to curry favor with her. Even if they couldn’t bring her to their side, they hoped at least to make her father wary of her, allowing them to fish in muddy waters.
The hall was filled with guests from various factions and powers, righteous, demonic, and secular alike. They mingled and conversed, though the righteous and demonic paths kept a cautious distance from one another, unwilling to start a conflict in the midst of such a grand occasion.
At that mont, Mo Xingyao entered the hall with Wei Chen. She wore a red dress adorned with black and gold, perfectly accentuating her curves and enhancing her beauty.
Wei Chen was dressed in a luxurious black robe with a jade pendant hanging at his waist, signifying his elevated status.
The guests looked at him in surprise; few recognized him, for he had traded his old, simple clothes for this elegant attire. The outfit suited him perfectly, coupling with his unique confident smile and domineering face, this amplified his natural charisma and gave him the air of a young master from a powerful demonic sect.
Wei Chen in black and Mo Xingyao in red, together they looked like a match made in heaven. Walking hand in hand, they caught every eye in the hall, prompting guests to whisper and speculate about the nature of their relationship.
"I don’t know why, but I have a very bad feeling... I think you’re going to screw over soon," Wei Chen muttered, then quickly smiled at the surrounding guests.
"You’re thinking too much, quick! Smile! Don’t act like a stranger now," Mo Xingyao whispered and nudged Wei Chen to play along.
"Hahahaha!" A bold laugh pierced through the clamor of the guests.
At that mont, a young man dressed in luxurious verdant and gold robes walked toward them, followed by an entourage of several young masters. His paper fan, made from white jade and gold leaf, fanned lazily in his hand. He gave off the air of an arrogant and pompous young master.
All in all, the man’s face looked more arrogant than confident. Maybe this was the result of living an unrestrained life of luxury since birth.
"So! This is Wei Chen, the renowned vagabond! We finally et!" the young man said with a boisterous laugh.
"Who’s this guy? Why does his face look so punchable?" Wei Chen asked, pointing at him.
"Hey! I heard that!" the man retorted.
"Don’t cause trouble, he’s Xin Hao, the young master of the Xin Clan of the Vermilion Bird Dynasty," said Mo Xingyao.
"That’s right! You can’t afford to offend ! Listen to her and know your place!" Xin Hao said smugly as he waved his fan.
Mo Xingyao continued, "Although you’re right that his face looks very punchable, that doesn’t an you should say it out loud, no matter how punchable it is."
"Hey!" Xin Hao protested.
Wei Chen smiled wryly, then accompanied Mo Xingyao to greet several more guests before the birthday celebration began.
At Xin Hao’s side, where he was observing the ceremony, one of his lackeys imdiately approached him.
"Young Master Xin, that prick humiliated you!" the lackey said, adding fuel to the fire.
"I know," Xin Hao replied.
"Do you want to teach that bastard a lesson? My father sent several Nascent Soul bodyguards here to protect ! If you don’t want to get your hands dirty, I can handle it for you!" the lackey offered eagerly.
Xin Hao shook his head before asking, "Have you watched his broadcast?"
"What broadcast, Young Master Xin?" the lackey asked, puzzled.
"Wei Chen’s broadcast. He’s a Soul Transformation Realm expert and can defeat a Nascent Soul cultivator with a single slap. If you haven’t seen it, then shut up. Your bodyguards may have the sa cultivation level as a small or dium sect leader in this province, but compared to him, they’re just ants," said Xin Hao.
"How can that be? He looks like..." the lackey said in disbelief.
"In his early twenties, right? I thought so too, but his strength speaks for itself. He’s truly a Soul Transformation Realm expert. Even if he were a ten-year-old brat, we’d still need to give him so face for his strength alone," Xin Hao said wisely.
"Your words are wise, Young Master," the lackey flattered him before retreating.
In truth, Xin Hao wasn’t as wise as he appeared. He was just a typical arrogant young master. If he hadn’t known about Wei Chen’s combat power beforehand, he would have started a rampage right then and there.
There was also another factor Xin Hao had to consider.... It was Mo Xingyao’s attitude toward Wei Chen. If the two shared a deep relationship, that would an Wei Chen was affiliated with the Sky-Severing Demon Valley, a powerful sect of the demonic path.
He would rather offend soone from the righteous path than provoke a mber of the demonic path. Given their madness and unpredictability, he wouldn’t have any peace of mind while staying here if he were to pissed them off.
anwhile, on Wei Chen and Mo Xingyao’s side, the birthday ceremony continued. Birthdays here were different from those in Wei Chen’s previous world. There were no cakes, no candles to blow, and no singing. Instead, guests exchanged blessings filled with elegant words and presented their gifts.
"Lady Mo, we, the rchant alliance of Thousand Treasure City, wish your business to grow and prosper. May your hall be filled with gold and jade!" said the first old man in line, smiling humbly before continuing.
"This is the Thousand-Year Qin. We heard it was made from golden nanmu wood and personally used by the forr empress of the fallen Azure Dragon Dynasty." His tone was filled with subservience and hidden flattery.
Mo Xingyao’s mischievous smile glead. "Oh? This gift is very precious! Do you want to be as auspicious as the Empress?"
"Yes! Exact—" Before the old rchant could finish, Mo Xingyao’s voice cut him off.
"Or..." her tone turned cold, "do you want to share the sa fate as the Empress of the Azure Dragon Dynasty?"
The old rchant’s face imdiately turned pale.
Anyone with a bit of education knew the tragic fate of the Azure Dragon Dynasty, especially that of its Empress.
The Azure Dragon Dynasty, once the ruling power, was annihilated by the Vermilion Bird Dynasty. The current emperor, Emperor Zhu Yan, had once been the Marshal of the Azure Dragon Dynasty. He single-handedly usurped the throne and eradicated the royal bloodline.
The Empress, once hailed as the most beautiful woman of her ti, was subjected to utter humiliation, reduced to a re slave to warm the usurper’s bed. When he was tired of her, he sent her to entertain his generals until she died from exhaustion.
The old rchant quickly fell to his knees.
"No! Lady Mo! I never ant it that way! This is a misunderstanding, a great misunderstanding! I would never dare!" he begged and groveled on the ground. If he could dig out his heart to prove his sincerity, he would have done it already.
Seeing this, Mo Xingyao let out a warm smile, as if the cold, murderous look from monts ago had been nothing but an illusion.
"Relax, old Lu. I was just joking," Mo Xingyao said as she helped the old man up.
"Th-thank you, Lady Mo. As for the gift, I..." Old Lu hesitated, unsure whether to take it back or still offer it. He was terrified that another wrong word might bring disaster to his family.
"I’ll take it, old Lu. Don’t think too much. Thank you for this gift," Mo Xingyao said with a disarming smile, making old Lu heave a sigh of relief before excusing himself from the line.
Wei Chen looked at Mo Xingyao and whispered, "Oi... were you really joking? Because if you were, that wasn’t funny."
"Hmmm? What do you think?" she whispered back with a mysterious smile.
After the fiasco with old Lu, the gift-giving session continued.
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